Stitch-length-controlling mechanism for knitting machines



April 1 1924. 1,488,972

G. P. BOSWORTH STITCH LENGTH CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed May 24 19i9 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Iii/216217767 v 6602:961 lioswowfi u yw ww 3298 G. P. BOSWORTH STITCH LENGTH CONTROLLING MECHANiSM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed My. '24 1919 Invenifo'r: Gear e PBosworfi/ April 1 1924. 1,488,972

G. P. BOSWORTH STITCH LENGTH CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed May 24 1919 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 lnvenifor: r 01213052002 57? Q6 72%;; W7 fiizs Patented Apr. 1, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE P. BOSWO RTI-I, OF CENTRAL FALLS, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR 'IO I-IEIVIPHILL COMPANY, OF CENTRAL FALLS, RHODE ISLAND, A RHODE ISLAND CORPORATION.

STITCH-LENGTH-CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES.

Application filed May 24, 1919. Serial No. 299,653.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE P. Boswonrrr,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Central Falls, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented an Improvement in Stitch-Length- Controlling Mechanism for Knitting Machines, of which the following description,

in connection with the accompanying drawings, is aspecification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to knitting niachines and more particularly to means for controlling, changing or varying the effective length of the stitches for any purpose, as, for example, for the purpose of permitting introduction of a splicing or recnforcing thread, or for permitting the effective substitution of a heavier thread or for shaping the article, which may be a knitted fabric of any type or description. Herein I have disclosed my invention in connection with the knitting of hosiery, but obviously my invention is not limited thereto.

This invention is an improvement upon that disclosed in my Patent No. 1,448,653 dated March 13, 1923.

In order that the principle of the invention may be readily understood, I have disclosed a single embodiment thereof in the accompanying drawings, wherein- Fig. 1 is an end elevation of a knitting machine having my invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the upper portion or head of a knitting machine and having my invention applied thereto;

Fig. 3 is a view taken at right angles to that of Fig. 2; and

Figs. 4 and 5 are plan views respectively showing the formation of loops of normal length and the formation of enlarged loops permitting the introduction of a splicing thread.

It is desirable to change or vary the length of the knitted loops or stitches for various purposes, certain of which I have above referred to. My invention is not limited in its application to any of said purposes or uses, but herein for purposes of illustration I have disclosed my invention as employed primarily to facilitate the introduction of a splicing thread as, for example, a highsplicing thread above the heel of a stocking, as well as a reenforcing thread for the sole of the foot.

My invention may be embodied in various types of knitting machines, whether straight or circular and whether the needles be of a spring heard or latch type. I have herein represented my invention as em bodied in a circular knitting machine wherein the needles are of the spring beard type and are carried by a needle cylinder to which movements of rotation and reciprocation are given in the well known manner to effect the formation of hosiery. Obviously the invention may be embodied in the knitting of hand coverings or underwear.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the frame of the machine is indicated at 1. Therein is mounted the usual drive shaft 2 having fast thereon a pinion 8, by which parts not herein shown are driven and which are unnecessary to describe at length. Upon said drive shaft may be the usual high speed, low speed and loose pulleys generally similar to those shown in the patent to Hemphill, No. 933,443. The knitting machine is provided with the usual knitting cylinder 4 wherein are mounted needles 5, which may be either spring beard or latch needles. These needles are vertically reciprocated in their courses by a needle cam ring 6 carrying cams 7 of any suitable type, as, for example, of the'general character shown in said Hemphill patent. The said needle cam ring is carried by a cam plate 8 supported by upright rods or members, one of which is indicated at 9 in Fig, 1., and which are operatively associated with the cams upon the cam shaft, so that the vertical position of the needle cam ring may be varied in order to vary the length of the stitches. In the disclosed embodiment of my invention, movements of rotation and reciprocation are imparted to the needle cylinder, but my invention is clearly applicable to a construction wherein the needle carrier or cylinder is held stationary and the needle cam carrier or ring is rotated and'reciprocated.

Upwardly extending from the bed plate 10 of the machine is a fixed element or part herein the usual post 11 upon the upper end of which is pivoted in any suitable manner a so-called latch ring or guard 12, which is herein represented as partially surrounding the circle of needles. Obviously a complete latch or guard ring of any other suitable character may be employed.

Operatively related to the needle cylinder 4 is a sinker cam ring 13 of suitable character surrounding sinkers 14 of any suitable type and mounted for radial movement in the upper edge of the needle cylinder. These sinkers are adapted to be moved radially by cams of any suitable character, as, for example, by the cams 15, 16, 17, 18, shown in Figs. 1 and 5, for the purpose of engaging the thread between its point of engagement by the needles and thus to cooperate with the needles in the formation of the loops or stitches.

The said sinker cam 13 rests loosely upon or about the upper end of the needle cylinder and is held from rotation with the needle cylinder and its needles and sinkers in any suitable manner, as, for example, by means of adjustable screws or stops 19, 20 tapped into ears or lugs 21, 22 carried by or formed upon the sinker cam ring. Said ears or lugs 21, 22 are spaced apart somewhat more widely than the width of the post 11 carrying the latch or guard ring 12, thus permitting a certain extent of lost motion between the needle cylinder and the sinker cam ring. This lost motion is preferably provided to permit the proper positioning of the cams of the sinker cam ring with respect to the needle came of the cam ring 6,that is, with respect to the knitting wave of the knitting needles in a manner well known and not herein necessary fully to describe.

Referring to Fig. 4, it is to be understood that the needle cylinder is rotating in a contraclockwise direction, and that therefore the sinker cams remain inactive until in the rotation of the needle cylinder, the sinker cam ring has been carried frictionally in said direction and until the screw 20 engages 'the post 11, whereupon the movement of the sinker cam ring ceases, and thereupon the sinkers 14: are moved in and out or radially in the customary manner in cooperation with the knitting wave of the knitting needles.

Preferably the machine is provided with a shaft 23 which may have mounted thereon one or more pattern or cam drums notherein necessary torefer to, and which in this embodiment of my invention also has fast thereon a pattern disk or drum 2 1 having eleva tions 25, 26 functioning during the forma tion of the leg and the heel of the stocking respectively, and the spaces 27 28 respectively controlling the formation of the so-called high splice and the formation of the double sole or the instep.

The knitting machine is provided with any suitable character of yarn or thread supplying devices, and preferably of the character shown in my said co-pending application and not herein disclosed, since reference is made to said application for a complete disclosure.

In accordance with my invention and especially the particular embodiment thereof herein represented, I have provided means whereby the circumferential relation of the sinker cams, and therefore the radial position of the sinkers at the efiective point of the knitting wave, namely, at the point where the yarn is taken by the descending needles in the disclosure embodiment of the invention, may be varied or changed for any sui able purpose, but particularly for the purpose of permitting the introduction of a splicing or reenforcing thread when and where the stitches are lengthened.

While for this purpose, any suitable means may be provided, I have herein represented the ear or lug 22 as having tapped thereinto an adjusting screw 29, shown most clearly in Figs. .1 and 5, and with which is adapted to cooperate a cam 30 upon a lever arm 31 arranged normally to lie adjacent to the needle cylinder and pivoted upon a pin or stud 32 upon the fixed element or post 11, as clearly indicated in Figs. 2 and 3 said cam and lever constituting in effect a pivotal cam. The said lever, which is herein shown as hell crank in form, is provided with a second arm 33 having a pin 34L extending loosely into a slot- 35 in the upper end of a long, upright rod 36. At its lower end, the said rod is secured at 37 to the outer end of a lever 38 pivoted at 39 upon the framing of the machine and normally held by coil spring 40 in engagement at its inner end 1-1 with the pattern disk or drum 24.

The pin or stud 32 is mounted in a bracket 42, and surrounding said pin is a coiled spring 13, one end whereof engages the lever arm 31 and the other end of said bracket in such a manner as to move the lever arm radially inward or into the position shown in Fig. 5, when permitted to do so by the elevation of the rod 36. In Fig. 2, the rod 36 is shown as elevated, and the slot 35 is so positioned as to permit the lever 31, 33 to be swung radially inward. When, however, the rod 36 is held in its downward position, the upper end of the slot 35 prevents any inward movement of the lever 31.

Fast upon the needle cylinder 1 is a however, the cam a5 in the rotation or in the reciprocation of the needle cylinder has moved beyond the projection 46, and when the head 4:1 of the lever 38 is in either recess 27, 28, then the lever 31, 33 is thrown radially inward by the spring 43, and the cam head 30 thereof is brought into the path of the adjustable screw 29, with the result that the movement of the sinker camv ring with the needle cylinder is stopped or prevented at an early period, and therefore the sinkers 14? are moved in radially to a greater extent at the needle which is depressed to the greatest extent in the formation of the knitting wave. The position of said needles corresponds substantially with the radial line 17 in Figs. 4 and 5, said lowermost needle being the needle to the right or left of the said line 4?. Viewing Fig. 5, the position of the sinker at the line 4:7 and the two or more sinkers to the right of said line looking inward toward the center of the needle cylinder is advanced inwardly to a greater degree than would be the case of the said sinkers were not the said cam 30 in operative position with relation to the screw or stop 30 as explained. The effect therefore is to draw more yarn between needles where the yarn is taken by the needles, and therefore to increase the length of the stitches, which, in this application of my invention, is particularly intended to permit the introduction. of a reenforcing or strengthening thread.

It will be understood that in the disclosed embodiment of my invention, the stitches are lengthened throughout partial courses only, as, for example, in the high splice and in the sole of the foot. In the remaining half or portion of each of these courses, the stitches are of normal length. Obviously within the scope of my invention, the length of the stitches may be varied, as by increasing them throughout the entire course or any number of entire courses. It will be evident from the foregoing description that in the disclosed embodiment of my invention, I have represented a simple form of means for governing or varying the stitch length and more especially for the purpose of permitting th effective introduction of a splicing or reenforcing thread.

Having thus described one illustrative embodiment of my invention, I desire it to be understood that although specific terms are employed, they are used, in a generic and descriptive sense and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being set forth in th following claims:

1. Means for governing the stitch length in a knitting machine including a movable needle cylinder, a relatively fixed part, sinker cam ring having a projection adapted to engage said relatively fixed part, a lever having an arm adapted to be moved radially of saidneedle cylinder for interposition between said projection and said fixed part to determine the relation of said sinker cam ring with said fixed cam ring, and a cam upon the needle cylinder to engage the last mentioned arm of said lever intermediate the portion thereof interposed between said projection and said fixed part and the pivot of said lever tending periodically to remove said lever from its position of interposition.

2. Means for governing the stitch length in a knitting machine includin a movable needle cylinder, a relatively hxed part, a sinker cam having a projection adapted to engage said fixed part, a lever having an arm arranged to move radially of said needle cylinder interposed between said projection and said fixed part, a cam carried by said needle cylinder tending periodically to engage said arm and remove it from its position between said projection and said fixed part, said lever having a second arm and automatic means operating through said second arm to control the action of the periodically operating means for said lever.

3. Means for governing the stitch length of a knitting machine comprising a movable needle cylinder, a sinker cam ring having a projection with an adjustable screw, a fixed part of the machine with which said screw is adapted to engage, a lever having two arms 31 and 33, the arm 31 being adapted to be interposed between said screw and said fixed part, a cam 45 carried by said needle cylinder adapted to engage said arm 31 and periodically remove it from its position of interposition and means engaging the arm 33 of said lever to control coaction between said cam 45 and the arm 31 of said lever.

4. Means for governing the stitch length in a knitting machine comprising a cam carrier and a sinker cam ring, means to hold them in fixed relation and means to vary said relation including a lever having arms 31, 33, a spring tending to throw the arm 31 inward, a cam 45 tending periodically to engage said arm 31 and throw it outward and means to lock said lever in its outer position including a rod having a slotted connection with the arm 33 of said lever adapted to permit limited independentmovement of said lever, a second lever connected to said rod and a cam upon the pattern cam shaft to act upon said second lever.

5. Means for governing the stitch length in a knitting machine comprising a movable needle carrier, a sinker cam carrier, a needle cam carrier, means to hold said sinker cam carrier and said needle cam carrier in fixed relation and means to vary said relation including a lever having an arm pivotally movable laterally of the face of said needle carrier, a spring tending to move said arm toward said needle carrier, a cam carried by said needle carrier adapted to engage said arm and tend to move it away from said needle carrier, a second arm for said lever, a rod having slotted connection with said second arm of said lever, a second lever connected to said rod and apattern cam to act upon said second lever.

6. l\ [ean.s for governing the stitch length in a knitting machine comprising a needle cam carrier, and a sinker 0am ring, means to hold them in fixed relation, a needle carrier and means to vary the relation of said needle cam carrier and said sinker cam ring including a lever having an arm 31 normally lying adjacent to the needlecarrier' and an arm 33, a cam carried by said needle carrier to move said arm 31 away from said needle carrier, a spring to move said arm in an opposite direction, and additional means acting upon the arm of said lever for effecting the periodic functioning of said lever.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

GEORGE P. BOSVVORTH. 

